Suchergebnisse

The study of waste generated in ports is a vitally important issue to reduce marine pollution and improve port management systems. In this article, the authors study the management of solid waste generated in the ports of the Canary Islands. For this purpose, a waste management model based on the circular economy is developed. With this model, it is possible to reduce pollution in the port areas of the capital?s islands, increase the fraction of recycled waste and obtain additional energy for the ports. The interest of this study lies in the singularities of these islands with respect to the geographic limitations that make them weak energy environments. The proposed solution to solve the current problems and achieve a zone of zero waste (throughout the port of Santa Cruz and its industrial estate) has two main phases: the first, in which solid waste is processed and a part is recycled, and the second, which consists of recovering the energy of the converted fuels. The advantages of the application of this model are that CO2 emissions are reduced, energy savings are realized, waste management is improved in these environments (the recycling fraction is increased considerably), and new jobs are created. This model also contributes to the development of the Special Territorial Plan for Waste Management of the Canary Islands, in accordance with the policies of the European Union required for the coming years.

Municipal solid waste (MSW) management is a controversial aspect of isolated environments, not only because the production of waste grows exponentially, but also because in these isolated regions the difficulties are accentuated in comparison with the mainland territories. The limitation of space, the technology of scale and the peaks of generation due to existing tourism, are clear examples of the barriers that must be overcome. This research studies the potential of MSW recovery on the island of La Gomera (Canary Islands) as an alternative to landfill deposition, being an additional energy source for heat and electricity. Likewise, the possibility of carrying out the landfill mining located in the El Revolcadero environmental complex is explored. The methodology followed consists, first of all, on estimating the annual amount of MSW and waste deposited in the landfill. Second, the characterization of representative samples of each municipality is carried out. Third, according to these characteristics, the thermal treatment is chosen and, finally, the energy generated is evaluated. The results are encouraging, and many advantages are derived from this model. The annual recycling figure increases by about 5000 tons per year, the percentage of renewable energy from waste reaches 35.5% (most installed capacity is diesel), and greenhouse gases (GHG) are reduced by more than half. To overcome the challenges in the integral management of MSW, it is necessary to move from a linear economy to a circular economy that takes into account the priorities established by the European Union to solve the problem of these isolated environments in terms of energy.

Municipal solid waste (MSW) management is a problematic aspect in isolated environments. Not only because the production of waste grows exponentially, but because in these isolated regions the difficulties are accentuated in compar-ison with the peninsular territories. The limitation of space, the technology of scale and the peaks of generation due to existing tourism, are clear examples of the barriers that must be overcome. This document studies the potential for the recovery of municipal solid waste on the island of La Gomera (Canary Islands) as an additional source of energy to produce heat and electricity. Also, the pos-sibility of carrying out the landfill mining located in the El Revolcadero envi-ronmental complex is explored. Many advantages are derived from this model: there is a significant increase in the fraction of recycling (almost non-existent at present), a greater share of renewable energy on the island (almost every-thing is diesel), the recovery of green areas and a reduction of greenhouse gas-es (GHG). To overcome the challenges that lie ahead in the integral manage-ment of solid municipal waste, we must move from a linear economy to a cir-cular economy that takes into account the priorities established by the European Union to improve the collection and treatment of municipal waste.